President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s “Nigeria First” industrial policy has been hailed as a bold step towards reviving the country’s manufacturing sector and driving economic growth. The vision is clear: ban imports of goods that can be produced locally, prioritise Nigerian-made products in government procurement, and create jobs by building up domestic industry. But as anyone who has run a factory or tried to move goods across Nigeria’s vast landscape knows, the real test lies not in the ambition, but in overcoming the long-standing obstacles that have tripped up similar efforts before.